1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to aeration systems, and particularly to an integrated aeration system utilizing a water pump.
2. Description of the Related Art
Aeration is one of the processes employed in various air-water contactors, such as an aquarium, flotation devices, biological treatment in wastewater, etc. In a wastewater process, air is introduced in the secondary stage (biological) using convectional technologies to increase the concentration of Dissolved Oxygen DO (usually 2.0 ppm) needed for the bacteria to breath and consume the organic compounds. Presently, diffused aeration is used to introduce air to the system under high pressure from the bottom of the basin (clarifier) through pores in a pipe network utilizing compressors.
However, this type of technology is costly because it requires an extra cost to operate air compressors that provide pressurized gas/air. Other aeration processes include mechanical aeration utilizing impellers and plunging liquid jets. However, mechanical aeration isn't efficient and consumes high energy. Similarly, in plunging jets, the aeration is limited to the nearby liquid, and the bubble sizes can't be controlled.
Certain environmental problems, such as contamination of seawater by wastewater, require efficient and immediate aeration because this contamination will ultimately lead to oxygen depletion, and consequently will destroy the aquatic life (e.g., the fish kill phenomenon) unless dissolved oxygen is restored quickly. In this case, an aeration technology is required to promote aeration phenomena and increase dissolved oxygen concentration (DO) into water immediately. Not only this, but also aerators can be used to remove unwanted gases from the atmosphere to dissolve them into water. However, most of the existing aerators consume a lot of energy with limited aeration due to the use of compressors for diffused aeration and propellers for mechanical aeration. Hence, all of these processes appear to be costly, not very efficient, and fixed (not portable). In addition, conventional aeration systems are recognized as being considerably burdensome in their maintenance and management. This has encouraged researchers to seek an alternative system that provides efficient oxygen transfer at a lower cost.
Thus, an integrated aeration system solving the aforementioned problems is desired.